Strange disease in Benue, 15 dead

The Senate has raised the alarm over the outbreak of a strange epidemic in the Oye-Obi Local Government Area of Benue State.

It urged the Federal Ministry of Health to immediately mobilise focal persons to the area to investigate and ascertain the nature of the disease which has so far claimed 15 lives.

The Senate urged the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control to promptly put up surveillance to contain the disease, see to the treatment of victims and protect others from contracting it.

The Senate made the resolutions after considering a motion brought to the floor by Senator Abba Moro (PDP Benue South) during plenary on Thursday.


According to him, the first victims of the epidemic are Happiness Ogbo, Onajobi Ogbedu, Wisdom Agwo, Andy Edu, all of whom died 48 hours after contracting the undiagnosed disease.

He added that the disease, which had yet to be identified by health authorities and medical experts in Benue State, had symptoms such as headache, internal heat, diarrhoea, vomiting, stomach ache, weakness of the body and swollen stomach.

“As of Monday, February 3, 2020, the number of persons affected by the strange epidemic had risen to one hundred and four,” Moro lamented.